by DRK
Clyden sat by Xavier's side as an old pilot flew the sky car out of Sparkle City. George McCleer sat on the bench opposite the governor and his security man. At first they flew in silence, gazing out the windows at the desert beneath them.
George remembered how, this morning, Nina had still worried about the trip. He assured her he would be okay, and she relaxed some when he pointed out to her that Xavier had stopped being such a pest, and that Xavier no longer made those crude remarks, so she should not worry. Since he blew up at Xavier at the hospital, the governor of the World of Hope must have finally realized his place.
As the aircar continued on its way, Xavier peered out the window at the rugged land below, with its scrubby plants here and there, but mostly the splotchy grey and red rocks. Out of the blue, he asked if George had slept well last night.
"Uh, yes, why?" Indeed, he wondered why Xavier would be concerned about such a thing.
"Oh, okay, good. It was nothing. A little excitement last night, that's all. Somebody trespassed and tried to bust into the Governor's House. I don't know what he wanted. Fortunately, Sec. Ldr. Clyden and his security team caught him while making their rounds, before he could do any mischief. I thought maybe the noise woke you."
"No, no problem. I slept like a log."
Xavier nodded, glad to hear this, apparently. Neither made any mention of the friction from yesterday, and Xavier chatted breezily, like they were true old chums. This unnerved George a bit, and he began to think Xavier deliberately did it to spook him.
When the pilot encountered some turbulence, he circled around a large canyon and then returned to course. Xavier explained how sometimes wild air pockets, without warning, sped across flight paths, due to all the environment-generating which continued day and night, making the planet a bit more habitable and Earthlike, each day more than the previous day. "You saw the vent stacks on the Enviro-Gen- constantly pushing out heated gases."
"Oh. I see." George never knew Xavier to make so much small talk.
A half hour later a small, dull, greyish blue mountain appeared on the horizon. "There!" the governor exclaimed. "The mines. Where we dig out the ore that keeps Earth humming. An incredible energy source. Big deposits of the ore seemingly all over our small world."
The aircar drew closer. The small mountain grew in size. George noticed a moat gouged in the ground surrounding the entire mountain. A narrow steel footbridge spanned the gap, arriving at the mine entrance where armed robots stood guard. The large entrance gaped fifteen feet across, and twelve feet high. And barely visible from this angle in the air were some administrative buildings on the other side of the mountain, opposite the entrance way.
Xavier said, "We keep the moat stocked with Eaters, specially bred to like the taste of miners. Not too many miners want to escape, anyway, but if they do, they won't get far. The entrance is the only way in or out."
"What makes you think they won't want to make a break for it, Xavier?"
The governor smiled condescendingly. "Well, George, we have rehabilitated the miners. We've re-educated them. Whereas in times past they broke the law and brought down society, today they wish to be a boon to their fellow man, someone who contributes."
The aircar didn't need much of a landing strip, and that's exactly what it got at the mines. The pilot set the flying vehicle onto the rocky road right, where it came to an end in front of the moat. Much of the land in this area, hard and rocky and uneven, offered few landing spots.
The pilot waited by the aircar while Security Leader Clyden led Gov. Bright and George McCleer up to the bridge.
As soon as George had left the car, he noticed a harsh, wild music coming from the mine entrance. Even here, the music seemed rather loud. Frowning, his ears throbbing, George asked, "Is there some sort of a party going on inside the mines?"
Xavier chuckled. "Just the PA system blasting away. The miners love it. The fast tempo helps inspire them to dig out the ore faster."
"It must be murder on the human guards."
"Naw, they don't mind," Clyden assured him. "We wear headsets to quiet the noise when we are on duty in the mines all day long. But some of the guards, if I catch them, I have to tell them to put back on their earphones, so they don't go deaf. Some of the guys like the noise as much as do the miners."
Clyden went first over the bridge.
Xavier bragged, "I am happy to say that the miners appreciate the motivational music. And I am most happy to report how successful our rehabilitation methods are. In fact, I am rather proud of that achievement. Technically the miners are still criminals, but they don't see it that way. They get good food and we do whatever we can to upkeep their conditions. In gratitude for all our help, they work as hard as they can, day in and day out. Again, let me remind that we get little help from Earth. However, we still manage to keep them happy and content to find and dig out Earth's precious power ore. Wait. When you see them in action, you will be impressed."
As they crossed the bridge, the deep darkness under them and noises of things shuffling about down there in the moat caught George's attention. Far below, in the blackness at the bottom, horrible growls and snarls sounded forth, and the commotions of furious fighting. Halfway over the bridge, George stopped, speechless, listening to the tumult down in the gloom. He peered close to the edge, trying to catch a glimpse of the mysterious creatures he had heard so much about (none of it any good), and now had a chance to see them live.
Xavier halted once he realized that George lagged behind. He turned and saw him gazing over the side, so close to the edge... Quietly he moved back across the bridge, to stand directly behind George, and reached out with his arms-
A hairy, slimy tentacle shot up from the blackness and snaked toward George! It wrapped itself around his ankle, but before it could pull him over, Xavier got hold of George's shoulders and yanked him away from the tentacle's grasp. He hurried George across the bridge the rest of the way, out of harm's reach.
It all happened so fast, the whole thing was over before it registered with George.
"What are you doing, George?! Do you want to get yourself eaten? You must be careful!"
George blinked, trying to comprehend. "I- I almost became dinner for an Eater!"
"Yes, that's one of our security systems," Clyden told him, a bit pleased with himself because of the fact that he had helped set up the system. "There's only one way out of the mines, as Gov. Xavier has already told you, and the robots and the Eaters are guarding it. Should any miner decide he didn't like his job anymore, well, he can't go far. But, as Gov. Xavier also already told you, most actually enjoy themselves here."
Xavier added, "The Eaters are not usually so big as to be able to reach as high as the bridge from such a deep moat, but on occasion one stands atop another's back. Good thing the creatures are not very organized, but just in case, we don't stock so many in at once, so the beasts do not pile atop one another and climb out their pit."
Somewhat shaken, George nodded. "Yes, that is a good thing."
As the robot guards warmly greeted Xavier (warmly, at least, for a robot), and Clyden only a little less warmly, Xavier took George into the dimly lit descending tunnel, warning him again, "Be careful, George. It's not a wise idea to dawdle over the moat. That only encourages the Eaters to try for an easy meal. We certainly don't want anything to happen to you!" And he sounded so sincere, but the way he punctuated the claim with a tiny chuckle gave George a creepy chill, as bad as the shivers he had gotten from his close encounter with the Eater.
The Miners